trade - All posts tagged trade

The U.S. trade picture would look worse if not for the fracking revolution. The surge in domestic oil and natural gas production in states such as North Dakota, Pennsylvania and Colorado continues to put downward pressure on the U.S. trade deficit.

The first hint of what’s in store for Friday’s U.S. employment report comes Wednesday via ADP. The large payroll processor is expected to report that the economy added at least 200,000 private-sector jobs in May – if not more. April’s trade numbers will also offer more clues on the strength of the economy, but that report could show a different story.

The U.S. trade deficit has trended lower over the past year largely because the U.S. is exporting more petroleum while oil imports have tapered off. Economists expect a modest decline in November. Also on Tuesday, a pair of senior Federal Reserve officials who been strong supporters of the bank’s economic-stimulus strategy are slated to make public appearances.

Wall Street gets a Gulliver-size heaping of economic data on Friday, but all of the Lilliputian kind: None of the reports are likely to sway markets in a big way. A survey of manufacturing executives conducted by the New York Federal Reserve kicks things off at 8:30 a.m. Eastern.